First there was WAG, now there’s CPW…

….and don't forget about ROO. I love using WAG ("wild-assed guess") instead of bad data, and now I have another metric to recommend: CPW, or "cost per whatever."

In his iMedia Connection blog, David Smith of Mediasmith lays claim to coining CPW, saying that "We all know (or should know) by now that CPC is dead.
Clickthrough rates, once the hallmark metric of Web success, have proven to be
irrelevant and it is time we moved on."

In other words, measure what really defines success or ROO - "return on objective," not Kanga and Roo.

WAG, CPW and ROO are all really useful, and, as Smith points out, these terms prompt "a little smile when someone first hears it. And any analytics conversation can use that."